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Akira class
Type: Heavy Cruiser Length: 465 meters Beam: 317 meters Draft: 87 meters Decks: 19 Mass: 3,055,000 metric tons Crew: 535 Maximum Speed: Warp 9.3 Armament: 3 Type-X phaser arrays; 15 photon torpedo launchers Defenses: Deflector shields The Akira-class starship is a heavy cruiser used by Starfleetsince 2368. Akira class vessels featured prominently in the 2373 Borg attack on Earth and in the Dominion War. Before that they have mostly been on deep-space assignments. The Akira class ships carry an extremely heavy torpedo armament of no less than 15 photon torpedo tubes. Seven of these are mounted in the large roll bar pod, all facing forwards; the remaining eight are located in the saucer section, two of which face directly out to port and starboard - an unusual feature in a Starfleet vessel. Another unusual feature of the Akira class is the hangar bay arrangements. There are two large shuttle bays in the saucer section, one at the forward edge of the saucer section and one at the rear. Background Information The Akira is most notable as the inspiration for the design of the ''Enterprise'' (NX-01), the central ship of Star Trek 's fifth series of the same name. The Akira-class starship is one of the more controversial ships that has appeared on Star Trek. Originally appearing in Star Trek: First Contact, the design caught the attention of eagle-eyed fans studying the fleeting images of the [[USS Thunderchild|USS Thunderchild]]'s attack on the Borg cube. Despite its impressive appearance, though, some incongruities leave room for heated debate. Registry Number The first issue in question is the ship's registry number. The most visible representative of the class, the [[USS Thunderchild|USS Thunderchild]], had a registry of NCC-63549 and a noticeable appearance more in line with later ships like the ''Intrepid'' class and the ''Sovereign'' class. To those fans who believe in chronological assignment of registries, the Thunderchild 's low number requires some explanation, since it would put the design somewhere before the [[Galaxy | Galaxy class]]. Armament Second is the class's armament. Designer Alex Jaeger stated in a Star Trek: The Magazine interview that he created the Akira as a sort of "carrier/gunship," armed with an astounding 15 photon torpedo launchers. For many starship buffs, that figure is simply too large to be credible when considered alongside other Starfleet ships. Length Third is the overall length of the ship. * Star Trek Encyclopedia II: 400-460m * Star Trek Deep Space Nine Technical Manual: 464.43m * VFX size according to a post (January 20, 1998) in alt.tv.star-trek.ds9 by David Stipes, VFX Supervisor DS9: 860' = 262.13m * VFX size derived by Frank Gerratana : 340m ±10m * Ex-Astris-Scientia: 440m ±10m Ships of the Class [[USS Akira|USS Akira]] (NCC-62497) [[USS Rabin|USS Rabin]] (NCC-63574) [[USS Thunderchild|USS Thunderchild]] (NCC-63549) [[USS Spector|USS Spector]] (NCC-65549) Uncertain Ships *NCC-63646 (No name given) Reference *DITL has a very complete list of specs on the Akira class, but not all specs are canon. *Ex Astris Scientia contains detailed notes and articles on the Akira class. *Gilso Star Trek Schematics shows schematics of the Akira class with additional information. *Pedro's Shiporama shows a lot of photo's and screenshots of the Akira class. *Star Ship Schematics shows schematics of the Akira class. *Star Trek Intelligence features specs and some photo's, but not all specs are canon. *Stephen Pugh's vessels of Star Fleet offers contructive criticism and a very complete list of known Akira class vessels. *The Star Trek Archive shows all ''Akira''s seen on screen or of screen.